The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1887-03-05
THE GYPSY'S TENT
Construction and Interior Arrangement, n,
the NOmad's Oniy Home.

ieeu "lue' anu ANo vi SIN Ieet nigh. The
framework consists of a LONG. stout
center-piece of oak, through which in
either direction, pass the ends of omar
ter-circle hickory bows, the other ends
of which fit in the sockets of oaken neos
driven into the earth Over this frame
work, which no ordinary storm could
displace or weaken, is tightly drawn
wooden stuff resembling our own old
fashioned, homespun wooden shoots
There is not stitch taken anywhere.
You will see these wooden spreads
fastened together by dainty hickory
skewers, pointed and polished as a
farmers well-used husking-pin. The
rear end is always tightly covered, but
the front is always open. The ''noor''
of the tent is usually covered with a
generous depth of clean straw, over
which are commonly seen bits of sail
cloth or carpets and many blankets;
but if the camp is where such trees
abound, they will give place to branches
of the larch, pine orcedar whose aroma
the Gypsies dearly love.
The interior of this little brown home
nest in the woods is something of n
study. The rear portion. consistilsSs.o of
about four feet of space running across
the tent. is sacred to the valuables of
the family, which are bestowed at head
and foot of this remotest couch. always
occupied by the husband and wife
This is separated from another bed by
old shawls or blankets, or sometimes by
gay curtaining. In the latter bed the
girls pass the night, and between their
apartment and another at the tent
mouth is more drapery. In the outer
division are packed the old men and
women, the boys and the dogs. This
arrangement is preserved, varying only
as the size of each family may differ,
even if its head may be so prosperous
as to own Il handsome wagon especially
built for the road. Even in this case the
owner and his belongings will more fire.
quently be found in the loved tent upon
the as dearly loved ground. From
the stout tent-bows depend the fam
! ily's all-sorts, from bits of ribbon and
innumerable articles of apparel to
poultry and extra pots and kettles.
Each of these articles is oftener
tied in its place by slender willow
thong than with string, for the Gypsy is
hcreditarily as deft at all use of the
witty, fragrant osier as is the sailor
with the sturdy, odorous rope. Arti-
Giles OF toilet are scant among the biiorl-
terie of the tent. But the Gypsy woman
or girl, while neat and sweet about her
| person, has come to know many little
tricks of adprnment, where a waving
! fold, or a deft tuck, or an airy tilt of
! the hair or scarf, stands her in good
stead in the place of bandoline, batting
and 1lummery of the social female pre-
tender, who, with all her perking and
primping, can never attain her Gypsy
sisters ingenious righteousness. Bat
two toilet articles can never be found.
These are common property. They are
the coarse comb and the cheap looking
| glass The formc5' does GOOD service
on the horses tails. The latter, while
everybody's who wants it, is the Gypsy
woman's only shrine. l can give no
reason for it, but | never yet saw mir
r3r larger than ones hand among these
! people; never was an unbrOken one
seen among them; and the universal
affair of this sort seems to be bit of
/ broken looking-glass caught across its
sharp angles by thorn-like skewers,
and thus fastened to the wooden stuff of
the brown tcnt-covers.
When you remember that this little
tent is the Gypsy's home, as much as
your own habitation is yours, and has
been his home since his race was born
IN the night of the centuries, YOU can
easily come into a partial recognition
Of the race feeling of attachment to and
sentiment III it. Indeed, this is not
going far enough. ] believe it true
throughout all the world that the
smaller the home-acre, the home-en-
yironment-in fact, the home-nest itself
the dearcr it is to those who live and
love in it. In this compact fact and
sense the Gypsy ever glows in restfui
Enjoyment. There is tender, loving
and almost pathetic encompassing of
the little spot with his very sight and
heart which | am sure am not deceive,
about. Its very daintiness and oneness
md littleness are all within his in
slant vision, comprehension, protection.
Hence it becomes part of him, and to
him so sacred part, that there is no
more use of expecting the snobbish
lweller in a modern American .'eetgb-
tishment" to admit the existence of such
q sentiment, than there is in expecting
aim and his good gladly" who are now
IN n palace and read the Sunday papers
regularly, to admit that they started
out in life in one room, on knuckle-
bone soup, at six dollars per week.
But even in a language only pre-
icrved from lip to lip in memory. and
whose possessors are too ignorant to
comprehend its or their own origin.
here still remain from the imagery of
an almost barbaric heart-lore many ex-
2reSSiOnS of most poetic form and faal-